GRAND RAPIDS, MI — The look of the Grand Rapids police station lobby is about to change dramatically as part of a $345,000 renovation that will address long-held security concerns and restrict public access inside the force headquarters.

"All of our security was pre-Sept. 11 planning," said Capt. David Kiddle, who commands the police support services division.

In fact, the Monroe Center headquarters was opened not long before the attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., and it's believed to be the only one in the Grand Rapids metro area without a fully secure lobby.

In the early days of operation, there was a public entrance along Fulton Street. Because of that, the station's information desk and watch commander office are located on that side of the building.

After the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, that entrance was closed.

"So in a sense, what was to be the front of the building is now the back of the building," Kiddle said.

Grand Rapids City commissioners recently targeted $105,000 toward the renovation, which could get underway this summer. Capital funds from the Police Department and Facilities Management will pay for the rest of the work.

The plan is to build a wall near an open staircase in the center of the lobby. The staircase and a nearby elevator, both leading to upstairs police offices, would no longer be accessible to the public.

A bank of teller-style windows with bullet-resistant glass would be created along the east side of the new lobby. There, the public can ask questions, order police and accident reports and speak to someone at the watch commander's desk.

Workers would be stationed behind the windows. Today, many are out in the open behind a service desk near the Fulton Street side.

Kiddle said the existing design is a potential problem because police have had confrontations — and made arrests — with people near that area. Many of the service desk workers are non-sworn staff and at risk, he said.

Kiddle said the existing layout also allows the public to sometimes reach places they should not be, particularly at night.

"We've found homeless guys sleeping up in one of the detective's offices before," he said.

Now, an officer is assigned in daytime hours to a kiosk near the Monroe Center Avenue entrance. The officer screens the public and directs them to the proper desk.

At night, officers and interns at the information desk can electronically "buzz" people in from the Monroe Center Avenue entrance, if necessary. But there's no clear line of sight from the desk to the doors.

After the renovation, the kiosk officer will be reassigned to other duties, such as road patrol.

Kiddle said the renovation will allow better use of space at the station and should help save on utility bills. Staff will be able to turn down the heat on the Fulton Street side when not in use.

Also, discussions are underway about leasing current police offices on the west side of the building near the Monroe Center Avenue side.

"That's an option going forward with the decreased staffing levels from previous years," he said.

The renovation also will bring Grand Rapids police in line with Criminal Justice Information Services protocol established by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Other police agencies in West Michigan have long had secure public entrances.

In Kentwood, security was a prime concern when the city's court-police complex on Walma Avenue SE was built in 2002.

"Our public area is pretty well controlled by the glass barrier we have," said Kentwood Police Chief Tom Hillen.

Hillen said Kentwood's lobby was designed, in part, with information that former Chief Richard Mattice gleaned from his position on the Commission on Law Enforcement Standards.

In that role, he traveled to other police agencies to evaluate their building security.

"He brought back the best practices he saw and incorporated it into the design of the building we have now," Hillen said.